Power Yogahttps://poweryoga.com
A yoga routine for complete fitness.Fri, 22 Feb 2019 11:08:15 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.9Yoga Buffethttps://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-buffet/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-buffet/#respondFri, 22 Feb 2019 11:08:15 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=210056How would I describe my yoga classes? They’re a yoga buffet. That’s my answer to what my classes are (or at least one of them). In a sense, this is what most all classes are, except for the rigid and dogmatic styles or types of yoga classes that believe that their way is the only […]

]]>How would I describe my yoga classes? They’re a yoga buffet. That’s my answer to what my classes are (or at least one of them). In a sense, this is what most all classes are, except for the rigid and dogmatic styles or types of yoga classes that believe that their way is the only way. Kind of like a religion. The problem with religion is its dogma, this idea that there is only one way or that their way is the only way or a better way. This mentality seems to go hand in hand with humans’ fearful nature, and it exists in some degree in most all human-organized endeavors, including the yoga community. Many people would feel out of place in many religions (or yoga practices), as those religions cannot answer the needs or questions that those people have, or maybe those people don’t resonate with the practices of those religions. So where does that leave people, if that was the only way? Yet all religions (and yoga practices) have some beautiful elements. What if you could pick and choose from all religions (or yoga practices) the stuff you appreciate, and then add some other stuff if you want and create your own practice? That’s what Buddha did!

In my classes, I try to create this type of mind-set or attitude, where I offer fully my 40 years of experience, yet encourage people to pick and choose out of these offerings that which resonates and feels right to them and leave the rest behind. This way they are personalizing their experience, turning a generic yoga class into something more personally conducive to their uniqueness. This is the same as a buffet, right? The chef lays out before you all the food, condiments, spices etc. that they offer (or some of it), and then you pick and choose what you want to eat as well as you choose the quantity, and of course you choose the seasoning. In this way the eating experience becomes more personal and more personally conducive to ones needs. This is what I encourage in my classes. I myself have had so many powerful and special wellness, spiritual and yoga experiences and using these experiences and adding my own intuitive elements, I have designed a wellness practice that’s conducive for me. It seems with all these styles and systems and practices of yoga out there, many yoga instructors have done the same thing. So if we have empowered ourselves to develop and design our own yoga practice or even a system that works for us, why would we not encourage our class participants to do the same?

Pattabhi Jois completely made up the Ashtanga yoga system so why can’t we make up our own system? Iyengar said he made it all up, John Friend broke away from Iyengar to create Anasara Yoga, Baptiste broke away from Bikram, Rolf Gates broke away from Baptiste, Rod Stryker went from Alan Finger’s ISHTA yoga to creating his own Para yoga, Jivamukti made up their own style etc… If all these folks and many more (Jesus Christ and Bruce Lee as well) have empowered themselves, why would we want to keep our students locked into our styles? Why not empower them to try it all and create their own as we did? My classes have this mentality and support this type of freethinking and independence. This is very empowering and one of the reasons I coined the term and call my classes Power Yoga. Our bodies are a by-product of two very unique things. They are a by-product of our genetic lineage and all our life experiences. No two people have these two same things. So to honor our unique experience, we need to discover how our history is affecting us and work accordingly and in this way a wellness practice or exercise becomes healing because we are honoring what we are feeling. It is actually not even yoga if you are not doing this, because in honoring what you are feeling as opposed to blindly following, one has to tune in to their unique experience. This tuning in is the first step in meditation; it’s called focus and concentration. If your yoga practice is not a meditation (in motion), then it’s lacking the healing potential it could have. Welcome to poweryoga.com and yoga buffet

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-buffet/feed/0The Absurdity of Relationshipshttps://poweryoga.com/blog/the-absurdity-of-relationships/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/the-absurdity-of-relationships/#respondSat, 02 Feb 2019 02:35:48 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=206837Healthy relationships start with the relationship we have with ourselves! All relationships are enhanced and thrive under the same conditions, just as all relationships are hindered under the same conditions. This includes the relationship we have with ourselves. Developing the qualities that heal and enhance the relationship you have with yourself means developing the qualities […]

]]>Healthy relationships start with the relationship we have with ourselves! All relationships are enhanced and thrive under the same conditions, just as all relationships are hindered under the same conditions. This includes the relationship we have with ourselves. Developing the qualities that heal and enhance the relationship you have with yourself means developing the qualities that heal and enhance our relationships with all things and all beings.

To quote Einstein, “all knowledge comes from experience.” Our experience is our teacher, and our teacher has taught us: The harder we are on anything, the faster we destroy it. Doesn’t matter whether it’s your automobile, body or marriage. If you want something to last a long time, the key is gentleness, not aggressiveness. Our experience has taught us that healthy relationships don’t respond positively to force and aggression, and it’s a cultural delusion to believe our bodies do. Although our culture has taught us “no pain, no gain“ and “more is better.“ The truth is, “no pain, no injury“ and “more is the same as not enough, it’s an extreme; how about something more personal, something in between.“ This something in between might be a foreign concept to Western culture; its called “moderation.“ Experience has taught us the keys to healthy relationships are benevolent qualities like being a good listener, gentleness, humility, calmness, patience and acceptance, amongst many other benevolent qualities. Can you imagine our physical health depends on these exact same qualities?

Exercise is a time dedicated to health and wellness. It’s a time period we are supposed to be focused on doing good to our bodies and mind. Our bodies are our sacred primary relationship, our bodies speak to us in the succinct language of sensation. Just like the wellness of all relationships depends on engagement, not avoidance, including the relationship we have with our bodies, these same relationships need the engagement to be gentle, not aggressive or forceful. So in order for our exercises to be beneficial, we have to approach and perform these exercises in a certain way. We have to be listening (patience & being a good listener) to how things feel so we can be gentle (moderation); when we feel we have reached a degree where the exercise is no longer gentle or moderate, we need to back off (humility), as we experience our boundaries of no longer being calm or safe, and our bodies are asking us to stop in that language of sensation (pain), we need to be respectful (acceptance). As we integrate these qualities into our exercises, which is what is necessary for benefit, we develop these qualities just like we develop muscles, by using them. These developed qualities benefit all our relationships. It’s like when you strengthen your biceps in exercise, those biceps help you pick up groceries and children. In other words, the muscles you develop in exercise help you outside of exercise. Same with these benevolent qualities, they are like muscles; if you use them, they develop, but also, if you don’t use them, they atrophy. As you use them, they strengthen and start to benefit all relationships. So health and wellness for the most part comes from a mind full of benevolent qualities, as benevolent qualities reduce stress. Stress is the precursor to most all disease. These same benevolent qualities are the foundation to all healthy relationships.

Just as it is absurd to try and change yourself to fit some misguided cultural ideal of how you should be, jamming and forcing yourself to fit some image that’s been implanted in our minds by family, media and culture, it is equally absurd to be jamming and forcing your opinions down other people’s throat. Reducing stress (health) means loving and accepting yourself as you are. You could say health and self-love (benevolent qualities) are one and the same. Enhancing and healing relationships with others means loving and accepting them as they are. I hate to get to mushy on you all, but it looks like love is the answer to most any question of health and wellness.

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/the-absurdity-of-relationships/feed/0Free Yoga Videoshttps://poweryoga.com/blog/free-yoga-videos/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/free-yoga-videos/#respondTue, 15 Jan 2019 03:05:44 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=203988You could say the best yoga videos are free yoga videos. I wouldn’t say that, though. Free is nice, no doubt, but what is nicer is quality. So let’s start again, the best yoga videos are high-quality free yoga videos! High-quality is not a reference to the photography, although high quality footage is nice, it’s a […]

]]>You could say the best yoga videos are free yoga videos. I wouldn’t say that, though. Free is nice, no doubt, but what is nicer is quality. So let’s start again, the best yoga videos are high-quality free yoga videos! High-quality is not a reference to the photography, although high quality footage is nice, it’s a reference to the instructor. As with everything, experience is our greatest teacher, so the more experienced instructor chances are the higher the quality online yoga class. If you are fairly new to yoga, do a little research on the instructor’s free yoga videos you are watching. Their bio, notes, comments and reviews of their classes may be available. Be open-minded about yoga’s multitude of expressions, as one class does not represent all. The many expressions of yoga represent the many personalities of the instructors, and there is a good chance you will find more than one instructor you resonate with. Besides style varieties, you will also find free yoga videos for beginner, intermediate and advanced practices. Yet if not, remember, not all the world’s amazing yoga classes are free online yoga classes. Some may charge a fee to access their classes and online archives. I believe here we have found a nice balance, offering a few of the best free yoga videos, which we rotate monthly. Free high-quality online yoga videos, led by highly experienced and locally popular instructors here at Santa Monica Power Yoga and Meditation. Our free online classes give people a chance to have access to our amazing high-quality online yoga classes, regardless of their situation, as is in line with our philosophy that this sacred, special and healing practice should be available to all. This is why our Santa Monica, Ca. (USA) studio is run on donation basis. We are dedicated to giving our best to all. Our studio is an amazing place to practice for doctors, musicians, contractors, movie stars, homeless people along with students, housewives, retirees and anyone else who desires some time dedicated to the type of fitness that includes silence and meditation, which adds up to calmness and relaxation, side by side with the most dynamic, well-rounded exercise on Earth. Indulging in our free online yoga classes, you will find yourself right in the midst of our daily, public classes which have been recorded live in our Santa Monica Power Yoga and Meditation studio in the heart of the Southern California yoga scene. Those who would like even more variety and access hundreds of classes at pennies per class can subscribe to our online yoga studio’s video library where you could literally do a different online yoga class every day for years without repeating the same class. Yet you will repeat classes and add them to your favorites as you find classes that just hit the right spot for you. Some yoga classes are like songs that just never get old. Hopefully you will find that to be the case with our free yoga video offerings, as we try to upload a nice variety of classes and change the classes monthly. Power Yoga is a special class that’s designed to be dynamic yet approachable. Power Yoga meets you where you are at and leads you to a wellspring of lightness, freedom and energy. Come check it out: https://poweryoga.com/sign-up/

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/free-yoga-videos/feed/0Yoga Meditationhttps://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-meditation/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-meditation/#respondThu, 03 Jan 2019 16:17:12 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=201979Meditation and Yoga is like Human and Heart. Yoga vs. Meditation is a ridiculous concept, as they are one and the same. They are inseparable and necessary to complete each other. So yes, yoga does include meditation; actually, yoga is meditation with an option to add poses. I’ve heard the question, what poses are yoga meditation poses? Meditation needs to occur […]

]]>Meditation and Yoga is like Human and Heart. Yoga vs. Meditation is a ridiculous concept, as they are one and the same. They are inseparable and necessary to complete each other. So yes, yoga does include meditation; actually, yoga is meditation with an option to add poses. I’ve heard the question, what poses are yoga meditation poses? Meditation needs to occur in all yoga poses, otherwise they are not yoga poses. So maybe we should just keep the words yoga meditation together. Although when focusing solely on meditation, the meditation yoga pose of choice is a comfortable seated pose of one’s choosing, where one can sit with a tall spine, soft shoulders (tension-free) and closed eyes (to minimize distractions). This seated pose is recommended but not obligatory.

We will not heal relationships and solve problems with loose hamstrings, yet we will with the benevolent qualities of our mind. This includes the relationship we have with ourselves. Yoga poses without meditation is like a body without a heart, basically it’s dead. So what is meditation, and how do we bring meditation and yoga poses together, so these poses become yoga poses? Meditation can be described many ways, and certainly the way I describe is not the only way. I describe meditation as mental fitness, and I describe mental fitness as developing the benevolent qualities of our mind. Benevolent qualities reduce stress, as opposed to malevolent qualities, which create stress. According to our medical communities, stress is the precursor to most all disease. So if wellness is the objective, meditation is all-important. Benevolent qualities are like muscles; when you use them, they develop, and when you don’t, they atrophy. So, mental fitness is using these benevolent qualities. How you do yoga meditation is a diverse subject, but we could start with focus and concentration. This means being a good listener. As one listens or observes something, including our body, within these poses (which is necessary for these poses to be healing, as we need to honor what we are feeling, which is why we are given feelings, to guide us), our mind quiets down. This quietness opens up a world of possibilities; this world is called yoga meditation! This is one answer to the question: How to do yoga meditation? Just pay attention. As you pay attention, your mind quiets, and a quiet mind is the opposite of a stressful mind. Yet paying attention, lessening thought distractions is difficult and a skill that can be developed. This is yoga meditation for beginners and remains yoga meditation as the practice matures. One simply continues developing this skill.

The benefits of yoga and meditation are diverse. How you meditate with yoga begins with focus and concentration. Yet from there, the modalities are many. Check out our “Meditation of Wisdom” or our “Meditation of Gratitude.” From there, there is so much to explore.

Yet, circling back to keeping yoga poses a meditation in motion, remember, if these poses are not meditation, then they are not yoga, they are simply Eastern calisthenics. When they are meditation, they become healing, because you are tuned into the subtleties you are feeling.

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-meditation/feed/0Yoga and Gratitudehttps://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-and-gratitude/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-and-gratitude/#respondFri, 21 Dec 2018 03:25:53 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=199854How does yoga help you express your gratitude? Why do we practice yoga? The common answer is health and/or wellness. What detracts from wellness more than stress? What is more opposite than stress than gratitude? Yoga and gratitude is like parent and child. Gratitude is a by-product of yoga as the goal of yoga is […]

]]>How does yoga help you express your gratitude? Why do we practice yoga? The common answer is health and/or wellness. What detracts from wellness more than stress? What is more opposite than stress than gratitude? Yoga and gratitude is like parent and child. Gratitude is a by-product of yoga as the goal of yoga is awareness as we become more aware we start to see how blessed we are and it starts to seem really silly that gratitude is not a larger player in our mind state. Especially when we understand the negative effects of stress and gratitude reversing those effects. Yet in the rat race where everyone is running around trying to get somewhere and trying to accumulate more somehow feeling like we are not good enough where we are at now. Somehow feeling like something is wrong or something is missing. When business 101 teaches us to create a need for what we are selling. A industry called marketing blossoms. The key to marketing is creating a need and one way to create a need is to make people feel inadequate without what they are selling, or feel like something is missing, feeling like we are not good enough the way we are. People see these messages in the form of ads or commercials, billboards, etc…. We see how beautiful we should be and what we should have to be cool and what we need for a good time, we see what we are missing and what we should have and even how we should act. Over time this stuff has an effect. It’s like we are being programmed by our culture and the program is making us sick but we can’t stop because we have become addicted to the program. Like the cigarette smoker is addicted to smoking even though they are poisoning themselves. Our mentality dwells more in lack than abundance. We become more focused on what we want than grateful for all we have. We believe our salvation will come from accumulation instead of appreciation. Accumulation has no end. Appreciation is the end, it’s the foundation of contentment and satisfaction.

Gratitude yoga is when you consciously attempt to be grateful. Ways to express gratitude within our yoga practice is to keep remembering the trillions of reasons you have to be grateful. Yoga poses that inspire gratitude and yoga sequences for cultivating gratitude are simply poses and sequences where your priority is to keep gratitude in the forefront of your mind. A yoga class for gratitude or dedicated to cultivating gratitude is lead by a person who value’s gratitude and is constantly reminding themselves or the class participants to bring ones mind back to gratitude.

Gratitude is like a muscle, if you use it, it will grow and if you don’t use it, it will atrophy. So bringing gratitude back into ones life means taking the time out of ones day and developing it. Thus here at poweryoga.com we offer you the meditation of gratitude. Your teacher is your life’s experiences and your teacher has taught you that you cannot develop something you do not use. So to cultivate gratitude you need to use it and if you’d like you can develop gratitude until it becomes the largest player in your psyche.

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-and-gratitude/feed/0Loving Kindness and Yogahttps://poweryoga.com/blog/loving-kindness-and-yoga/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/loving-kindness-and-yoga/#respondFri, 14 Dec 2018 01:13:30 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=198854You can find loving kindness with yoga, I did. Loving kindness is the natural by-product of my yoga practice and my growth as a yogi. To be a yogi is to desire and strive for my potential. I’m not sure how that will look yet I can keep moving in that direction by following what […]

]]>You can find loving kindness with yoga, I did. Loving kindness is the natural by-product of my yoga practice and my growth as a yogi. To be a yogi is to desire and strive for my potential. I’m not sure how that will look yet I can keep moving in that direction by following what makes sense to me and what feels right. I see nature’s perfection and I know I am part of that. I see that challenges are important tools that facilitate growth. I know wisdom and knowledge comes from experience whether it’s pleasant or unpleasant. More and more I am embracing my whole life. Awareness is the key as I catch myself slipping into stress inducing qualities and I pull my mind away knowing there is nothing wrong even when this don’t feel good. Then placing my mind in a place of my choosing.

As I started my yoga journey about 40 years ago the concept of karma (the law of attraction) struck me hard. The idea that what goes around comes around. Somehow I believed this law and principal to be true. Believing this was my first steps toward awareness as I needed to be aware that how I treated others would come back and bite in the keester. You could say this was the beginning of loving kindness in the sense I was engaging in less and less harmful (to others) activities. This is a selfish reason to be kind as I cared less about others and more about experiencing less personal unpleasantness yet it was a beginning.

Soon I started becoming aware of all the trouble I had caused others and myself and all the problems I created and basically what an A-hole I was to so many so often. Yet I have not only forgiven myself I realize that all of that and all of the ramifications to all of that have helped me learn and grow and become all I am today. So I understand the importance of my past. So when I see others acting out in a harmful manner I simply see myself at another time. I have compassion towards them as I know there was a time when I harmed many as well. This allows me less enmity and more loving kindness. I also realize a lot of my hurtful acts were a by-product of a hurtful childhood and the messages I absorbed as my character formed (between the ages of 0 – 6). I understand others are acting out as well. This helps in being less reactive and more patient, forgiving and tolerant. This also helps curtail any negative, vengeful or spiteful responses reducing the negativity bouncing back towards me.

This all stems from awareness and acknowledging the truth about myself. Denial is like walking into a wall over and over again. Awareness is one day realizing the pain of truly seeing your self is less painful then walking into that wall. Now when I realized the pain and suffering in my life was for the most part the outcome of my malevolent thoughts and actions eventually I graduated to the next realization which was if malevolence creates malevolence then benevolence can and will create benevolence. This was like a f@#king light bulb turning on in my head.

Long story short I have not been in a verbal or physical altercation and I have not been in jail in 20 some years. Not only am I not attracting this in my life but when the sh*t hits the fan I’m less reactive and not fanning those flames of harm. Mahatma Gandhi’s most famous quote was “ Be the change you want to see “ I can almost guarantee he was not talking about your hamstrings. Basically if you want loving kindness in your life than develop loving kindness. We can cultivate loving kindness with yoga practice, which might be yoga’s highest purpose. We can have loving kindness meditations we can have loving kindness yoga sequences. Loving kindness in our yoga practice, whether it’s asana or meditation is basically the intention behind the action. When doing a forward bend are you doing it to get flexible or to get well? Your teacher is your life experiences and your teacher taught you the harder you are on anything the faster you wear it out. Are you being aggressive or gentle? Are you trying to change it or care for it? Can you express loving kindness towards yourself even if it’s not egotistically gratifying? This means being more dominated by your awareness (wisdom) than your vanity or (fear). In doing so you start to develop loving kindness. This is very difficult and our previous learned behaviors are imbedded deep and we get little support from our culture and society. Yet this is the highest purpose of a yoga class and we are here to support this. Here’s a little gift from me to you… The Meditation of Compassion.

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/loving-kindness-and-yoga/feed/0The Absurdity of Successhttps://poweryoga.com/blog/the-absurdity-of-success/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/the-absurdity-of-success/#respondFri, 07 Dec 2018 20:38:00 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=197930While talking to my 16-year-old nephew yesterday about success, it was reinforced to me what is so obvious about our society’s opinions and beliefs about success. These opinions and beliefs are what our kids and we are seeing and therefore believing. Our topic was, “what is a successful business person?” This young man’s definition was […]

]]>While talking to my 16-year-old nephew yesterday about success, it was reinforced to me what is so obvious about our society’s opinions and beliefs about success. These opinions and beliefs are what our kids and we are seeing and therefore believing.

Our topic was, “what is a successful business person?” This young man’s definition was “someone who turned one million dollars into a billion dollars,” as he was talking about someone in particular. I asked, “what if that billionaire lied, cheated, stole and hurt a lot of people to acquire their billions?” The young man said, “makes no difference how the money is acquired, the ability to transform so little into so much makes this person a success.” This mentality is not surprising with our no-holds-barred capitalistic culture that glamorizes wealth and fame everywhere we look. As well as glamorizing a type of person through television and print who acquires the profits at all costs. As opposed to glamorizing the process of how the “success” was achieved. I googled the word “success,” and after the obvious of “acquiring one’s aim or purpose,” the 2nd definition was “the attainment of popularity or profit.” To me the 2nd definition is most important, because the 1st definition is a given, as it is the literal definition, yet the 2nd definition would be how success is viewed or conceptualized, especially in our careers and lives. This is why we see success as the attainment of superficial adornments like popularity, profit and power, as opposed to ethics, morality, and contentment. This is because this is the way our cultures sees it. Remember the psychological law, “the more you see something the more you believe it.“ This is what the children are seeing. If character is not in successes equation then character will not be important. One of the many ingredients of our society’s prosperity is “the rule of law.” The rule of law is supposed to even the playing field, as well as keep us safe. If the people who abide and flourish within these laws are not admired and promoted as “successful” to the same degree as the “rich and famous at all costs” folks, we create a mentality adverse to our health and of course the health of our culture and planet. We create laws for protection and safety. It’s not always easy to abide by laws. It’s very easy to lie, cheat, steal or treat others unfairly, when you are fearful of an outcome that’s not aligned with your culture’s template of “success.” It’s way more difficult to develop the courage that subdues and conquers fear than your biceps and glutes. Why do we not emphasize these muscles of character, morality, ethics, personal responsibility as well as cognitive ability and put the people who develop them on the magazine covers more often? Why is this not the theme of more dramas, television shows and news stories as often as scandal, crime, wealth, power and violence? Does it make us feel better about succumbing to our fear, when we see others have succumbed to their fear? Fear is a strong emotion and can easily trump logic and would take a lot of strength and moral character to overcome. Our society does not put that type of strength and moral character up on the pedestal of media nearly as often as it puts money, fame, violence and sexual beauty. This is a tremendous cultural flaw and absurd, and this is what prevents us from taking our next steps toward an enlightened and benevolent society. This keeps us groveling in and catering to our tribalism, violence and fear.

So I pondered how I would define a successful businessman or woman. This is how I would define my own career success and the example of success I’d like to pass to my kids, because as Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Be the change you’d like to see.“ My simple definition is, “Someone who is content in career and able to comfortably care for the people he or she is responsible for, including themselves, while providing honestly and ethically a needed service to their community.”

Generally speaking, my definition is so obviously not what we’ve seen, and may be difficult to actualize, especially without cultural support. We would need to be more dominated by our wisdom than our fear and vanity. Yet we can start to take baby steps together. One initial step would be to notice our own desires and mentality, and witness how our desires may have been impressed upon us by our culture, and begin disempowering them. You can weaken anything by no longer giving it food. In this case, this would mean witnessing the desires and tendencies implanted within you by the culture program you have seen. Once witnessed, decide for yourself whether these desires will give you peace and contentment, and if not, steer your mind away towards benevolent thoughts and desires, and the old ones will become weaker and weaker. Acknowledging the psychological law of “the more you see something the more you believe it.“ Start noticing what you are seeing. Shift media input (especially for the kids) from entertainment to upliftment. If we are going to allow into our psyche (which is way more impressionable then we may know) any media, be aware that it is emphasizing benevolent qualities. There is so much more we can do, yet this would be some baby steps, and this is what our Power Yoga classroom supports, as this is some real powerful stuff. Peace out, people!

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/the-absurdity-of-success/feed/0Yoga New Year’s Resolutionshttps://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-new-years-resolutions/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-new-years-resolutions/#respondMon, 03 Dec 2018 15:52:33 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=197291Is yoga on your New Year’s resolution list? Would you like to make yoga your New Year’s resolution? This is a tough topic to write about, as New Year’s resolutions for yoga seekers or anybody don’t seem to stick for very long. Why is that? If these New Year’s yoga resolutions are so important, why […]

]]>Is yoga on your New Year’s resolution list? Would you like to make yoga your New Year’s resolution? This is a tough topic to write about, as New Year’s resolutions for yoga seekers or anybody don’t seem to stick for very long. Why is that? If these New Year’s yoga resolutions are so important, why were they not started sooner? Short answer is, whenever these New Year’s resolutions are implemented, whether it’s actually New Year’s or not, it’s going to be tough, which is why they didn’t happen sooner! It’s tough because the implementation of healthy activities or the eradication of unhealthy activities means changing previous patterns. Patterns in this case are like addictions; mentally or physically, we become accustomed to them. Whenever you stop feeding a pattern or addiction, there is withdrawal symptoms, which many don’t find their way through. This is tough stuff, yet this is quite possibly only half the equation. The other half may be the lifestyle, i.e. home, family, friends, work etc… that may have facilitated these patterns. Most likely the reason most people don’t follow through with their resolutions is that they are not looking at this big picture. For example, if you are overeating or smoking to deal with family or workplace stress, changing your diet or quitting smoking is only half the equation, because that stress is still there. Yoga-inspired New Year’s resolutions are great for this, as yoga in general is a great stress buster. The reason yoga works so well is yoga helps bring awareness, so that we can steer ourselves away from stress-inducing reactions or situations.

Could you imagine your friends are not really your friends? Could you imagine your job or its environment is not optimal for you? Could you imagine needing to deal with a toxic family situation etc…? Shifting your environment may play a large role in fulfilling your resolutions. You know some “friends” are only our friends because we help them support their own negative behaviors. As soon as we no longer want to gossip or drink or partake with them in unhealthy behaviors, they turn on us. This might mean for a time we will be alone and this might seem scary as well. Yet since “like attracts like“ and we are no longer wanting to indulge in unhealthy behaviors, it’s only natural that we move on, and this moving on is a process of being alone until “like attracts like“ and new relationships start to bloom.

So obviously there are many reasons why we don’t hold on to our resolutions, and one resolution might lead to unintended and difficult consequences. Basically, we opened up a can of worms! Yet this is the process of healing and wellness, so be ready. One way to be ready is find a friend that will never leave you. I’m talking about a support practice. This practice could look many different ways but what it really is, is a yoga practice. A time dedicated to oneself! Time to breathe, stretch and become quiet. If you have not tried yoga, try one different type of yoga class a week until you find the type you resonate with, because you could easily dislike one class and love another. This yoga practice will support you through the multiplicity of withdrawal symptoms and changes and facilitate a healthy lifestyle, which ultimately will create a healthy community around you. So your yoga pose for the new year and your yoga sequence for the new year will be the poses and sequences you resonate with. Remember you are unique, and your poses and sequences need to conform to you and not vice versa. These yoga poses and yoga sequences will also shift and change, as you shift and change.

Studio and online classes are a great way to begin, as being guided through this can be very supportive. You may be gung ho, but start slow. My suggestion, 30 to 45 minute classes, three times per week. From there, let’s see what happens!

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-new-years-resolutions/feed/0The Definition of Yogahttps://poweryoga.com/blog/the-definition-of-yoga/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/the-definition-of-yoga/#respondFri, 23 Nov 2018 12:30:58 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=195135What is yoga? What is the meaning of yoga? The definition of yoga or its goal would be the same as the Power Yoga definition and goal. All styles, systems and practices of yoga should have the same objective of union, enlightenment or ???? The differences would be in the methodology in attaining yoga’s goal. […]

]]>What is yoga? What is the meaning of yoga? The definition of yoga or its goal would be the same as the Power Yoga definition and goal. All styles, systems and practices of yoga should have the same objective of union, enlightenment or ???? The differences would be in the methodology in attaining yoga’s goal. So, to define yoga, we have to be clear whether we are talking about yoga’s translation and meaning, or are we talking about defining yoga practices or a more personal yoga definition and meaning? Or what is hot yoga? Being my name is Bryan Kest, I may describe the definition of yoga and/or Power Yoga differently than others. So we are talking about three different things here. One would be the literal translation of the Sanskrit word Yoga into English. In that case the definition of yoga would be “to yoke.“ This not only translates the Sanskrit word “yoga,“ it also defines yoga’s goal. Two would be defining yoga practices, and three would be a personal definition. So, in tackling this subject, I will address all three things one by one.

First, let’s look at the literal definition of yoga which is “to yoke.“ This is the definition of yoga – yes, it may very well be a verb. So you could say that yoga very well might be an action instead of a thing. Yet it is only half the story as the yoga definition begs the question of “why?” Why yoke? Yoke is not a word used much anymore as it refers to the joining or harnessing two things (animals) together.

I believe this was done for the sole purpose of steering those two things. Now to answer the “why,“ we enter the subjective world of interpretation. Are we yoking myself with the laws of the universe, or are we yoking my will with the will of something greater than me? I personally like “yoking my truth with my action.“

Or “steering myself in a direction of my choosing as opposed to being steered by cultural norms, habit patterns or fears.” I like this idea of steering, because it requires awareness or enlightenment, which is commonly referred to as the goal of yoga.

Second, the literal translation of yoga would be “to yoke,“ and the practices, style or methods would be how to yoke, or the actual yoking. Honestly, I am not familiar with all the styles and systems of yoga practice, let alone trying keeping up with all the contemporary practices that have been developed and are being created as I write this. Yet what should be true and a given is the styles, systems, methodologies and yoga practices at home that exist in order to accomplish the definition above. The beauty of all the different styles and practices is, there is probably a method out there that you resonate with and appreciate. There is probably a book written on each one or even many written on each one, as is the case with “Power Yoga“ and others. There are many books, as Power Yoga is just a cool or stupid name, depending on one’s opinion, and people have created a multitude of yoga practices under the guise of that name. I used to think Power Yoga was a cool name, and in some ways I still do; after all, I coined it. Yet now I also think it’s a stupid name, but that’s for another blog.

Third, in my personal definition, I see “to yoke“ as a means “to steer;“ after all, without the need to steer, you don’t really have the need to yoke. So steering is the purpose. Steering is the purpose, because we are headed somewhere and steering is the most efficient way of getting there. So if you desire more benevolence, you should steer yourself towards benevolence. For example if you want to be physically healthy, and you understand stress is health’s largest impediment, you would want to be aware of your thoughts and responses to situations and things, in case they were stress-inducing, and steer yourself towards thoughts and responses that are stress-busting. So you could say, steering yourself away from malevolence and toward benevolence. From harmful thoughts and responses to benign or even uplifting thoughts and responses. Here’s another example: I’m looking at myself naked in the mirror. Due to my culture’s ideas of masculinity and beauty that have been imprinted in my mind, I get judgmental and critical about my body’s appearance. Through the awareness I have developed in my Power Yoga practice, I notice these stress-inducing qualities of judgment and criticism, and I “steer“ myself away from these thoughts.

So, to recap, yoga means “to yoke.” Yoking is for the purpose of steering, and steering is simply the most efficient way to get somewhere. Somewhere means or is awareness. I hope this article has been helpful.

]]>https://poweryoga.com/blog/the-definition-of-yoga/feed/0Yoga for Back Painhttps://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-for-back-pain/
https://poweryoga.com/blog/yoga-for-back-pain/#respondFri, 16 Nov 2018 00:20:33 +0000https://poweryoga.com/?p=194424Most people, when searching the topic “Yoga for Lower Back Pain,” are in pain or want to help someone who is in lower back pain. They want to know “yoga poses for lower back pain” or “which yoga is best for lower back pain,” or even “is yoga good for lower back pain?” So, I […]

]]>Most people, when searching the topic “Yoga for Lower Back Pain,” are in pain or want to help someone who is in lower back pain. They want to know “yoga poses for lower back pain” or “which yoga is best for lower back pain,” or even “is yoga good for lower back pain?” So, I would like to share what I know. I have 2 titanium discs in my lower back and have dealt with lower back issues for over 25 years. I would like to share what I have discovered, as I have found yoga poses that relieve back pain, as well as those that irritate. I have found yoga exercises for lower back pain, these are exercises that strengthen and support the region so your spine doesn’t have to take all the weight and pressure, therefore relieving compression. You may want to know which type of yoga is best for lower back pain, or even which sequences are best for lower back pain? I will try to clarify this topic and offer my experience in hope that this helps.

I have heard that 80% of Americans suffer from or have suffered from back pain. I have heard that after the common cold, there is not a larger ailment! So this topic is of mega importance to many, many folks. First, let’s address the cause for most lower back pain. From what I know, the two main culprits are stenosis and disc bulge or herniation. Although I have heard that there are also many cases where our medical community is actually unable to find the cause of pain. Yet even without knowing the cause, addressing the area can provide relief. Stenosis and bulging or herniated disc are two very different issues, so figuring out what’s going on is important to treatment. I recommend getting a MRI, which is non-invasive and can give a picture of the issue so it can be properly addressed. My issue was herniation, which could easily start as a bulge. This is the issue behind the majority of back pain, and this is what I will address here, as this is where my experience is. I will also only be addressing non-invasive ways to address this issue. Yet there has been quite a lot of success with micro discectomies and artificial discs, although long-term studies may be lacking at this point.

I believe the spine has about 24 vertebrae, and in-between the vertebrae is a gel-filled tissue called disc. Due to severe compression or even mild compression over time, the pressure on the disc creates a bulge or even a tear in the disc tissue where the gel pushes out. The bulge or oozing of gel brushes or pushes against nerves creating pain. The pain I am familiar with is mechanical pain, which is caused by disc tissue rubbing against nerves when there is movement, and sciatic pain, which can be incessant as there is incessant pressure applied to the nerve, or occasionally due to posture, as in seated for long periods or other posture-related activities. Personally, I was never able to find relief, hence the disc replacement surgery I eventually succumbed to. Yet I was also not willing to stop picking up and carrying my kids, even as they got older, which really exacerbated the situation. Yet I tried every healing modality I could find for 19 years before succumbing to surgery, and I became quite educated on the topic.

Understanding that disc compression is the culprit here, or maybe you could even say gravity is the culprit. One obvious solution is to relieve the compression. It doesn’t always work, because once the gel is out, the gel is out. Yet it does work sometimes and it does help quite often. Ok, three ways to relieve the compression. #1: traction. This mean creating space, pulling the vertebrae away from each other relieving the pressure on the disc. This is not easy to do using exercises yet there are a few ways although some require equipment or other people. We have a pose called extended plank (see below),

which simultaneously lengthens as well as strengthens. You can also use a gravity inversion table, which allows you to lie at a modest angle, head towards the ground, gently pulling your body longer (this is much more gentle than the extreme gravity inversion boots which have you hang upside down by your ankles). Lastly, you could lie on your back with arms stretched out and relaxed on the floor behind you, and allow some strong but gentle person to clasp your ankles and pull your legs away from your outstretched arms (this feels amazing).

#2: Relieving muscular tension in the back region by gently stretching the muscles in that area. Here are 2 poses, the first is called cobra (see below),

Spend about 3 minutes per side, gently giving the muscles a chance to soften. You can also get this region massaged. Massage is a wonderful tension buster.

#3: Strengthening the muscles around the spine, so they are more able to help support you. This is a good one, called Locust (see below):

More support means less compression.

One last item here. Stress and its antidote, meditation. Stress is a precursor to muscular tension, if not the largest contributor to back pain. Please consider cultivating a meditation practice, and please let me help you by offering you one for free.